Chapter 13: Flower Melody

"I'll be going now," Hana said aloud. She bumped into one of her classmates as she backed up to leave. "Ah, sorry!"

"Aren't you leaving a little early?" the classmate responded. Her pair of glasses framed her face along with her pale blonde braids. "You're usually still writing in your diary by now."

"Today is important," Hana said, putting her broom against the wall and emptying her dustpan. "I have my first song meeting soon."

"Didn't you have your first concert less than two weeks ago?" the classmate asked.

Hana nodded. "We have another one in a few months, but we need songs first. And my unit is one of the first ones, so our songs are recording the soonest."

"I guess I can't hold you back from work. Good luck, Hana-san."

The pink-haired idol bowed as she put her cleaning supplies to the side of the room. "I'll do my best!"

She grabbed her bag and ran out of the classroom, running past some other members of her school as they cleaned the halls. She did her best to not run into anyone as she passed by them, including coming to a complete stop as someone else turned the corner at the same time as her.

"Sorry!"

"You're in a hurry. Our practice isn't until 5," the person responded. Looking up at the other girl, Hana found herself face to face with her friend- and now her fellow unit member- Watanabe Akari.

"I have my meeting at the recording studio… soon," Hana said.

When the office's assistant, Harumi, gave her a potential time, she accepted immediately without further questions. The only issue was that she hadn't checked the day of the week. She hadn't known at the time that the session would be immediately after school on a weekday, and by the time she found out, it was far too late to reschedule.

"How soon?" Akari asked. The older girl was wearing her gym outfit, a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, and was carrying a stack of papers. Thankfully, Hana hadn't knocked them over and caused a scene.

"Um…" Hana started to say. "In half an hour."

That's why she finished her cleaning duties in the classroom as quickly as she could. Her diary time would have to wait until she was on the train ride to the recording studio.

"I was going to tell you about how my session went, but you probably need to go right now."

"We can talk later at the office?"

"See you then!" Akari waved with her free hand. "Later."

Hana arrived at the shoe lockers at the entrance of the school shortly after, opening up hers to switch out her pair of school slippers with her outside shoes.

After quickly putting on her right shoe, she made a few uneasy hops towards the door as she tried to leave while still putting on her second shoe. With nothing left to do at the high school, she exited the school gates running towards the station.

She was glad her school had switched uniforms in the last month. Otherwise, she'd be sweating even harder as she rushed to catch the train on time. Her summer uniform only carried over the red tartan skirt and tie from the winter variant, forgoing the gray blazer and switching to a short-sleeved dress shirt since it was hotter outside.

Normally she would have wanted to enjoy the hot June day, take a few minutes to appreciate the flowers growing by her school, and enjoy the summer heat as she walked to her meeting, but today she had to rush. If anything, she felt her idol training starting to come to fruition after noticing she could run for longer than a minute without slowing down.

"It's easy to have a dream," Reina's words from over a week ago still echoed in her mind as she ran. "The amount of effort you put in determines how close you can be to achieve it."

The golden-haired idol was part of the reason why she picked such an early time. Although now, she was starting to regret trying to change so quickly.

She barely made it to the station before the train left her, panting as she went through the front entrance. She only needed to make it to the train on time and then she wouldn't have to run the rest of the way. After scanning her train pass and rushing to her stop, the doors were already closing.

Hana took a deep breath, making a full sprint in an effort to squeeze through the doors. "Please let me in, please let me in, please let me in!"

She closed her eyes as she prayed to make it inside the train before it closed on her. Shortly after, she felt a solid thud as her running came forcibly to a stop and she was knocked to the ground, but it didn't have the same feeling she expected from hitting a metal door.

Instead, she ended up colliding with something softer. Opening her eyes, she found a middle schooler with the wind knocked out of her sitting in the train seat in front of her.

"I'm so sorry," Hana said to her as she started to get back on her feet. "Are you okay?"

"Owwwwww," the girl responded. Her dark purple hair was almost black. A pair of amethyst eyes looked back at Hana's blue when she opened up her eyes to look at the girl who had just tackled her.

Hana recognized her from a few days earlier. She had just performed in front of a crowd during an outdoor mini-live to preview her unit song, which let Hana see firsthand why she was chosen to be the center for the Supernova Project's first release.

She didn't disappoint. The crowd reacted positively to the performance, and they made headlines the day after. Not only that, but she was also one of the five backup dancers who were chosen to represent the company when the project was first revealed to the public.

Otokura Natsumi accomplished all of this at only the age of 13.

Her uniform was reminiscent of a classic white sailor's style, but with a black pinafore over it. Purple plaid accented her wrist cuffs and the hem of her skirt, and also patterned the bow pinning the back of her hair. White kneesocks and a pair of black Mary Janes finished the middle schooler's look.

"My peach juice!" the younger girl yelled, looking away from Hana. Looking at the ground between them, there was a tiny box of orange liquid slowly spilling out on the train floor.

"I'm sorry!" Hana responded.

She scrambled to get some tissues from her school bag, trying to mop up the drink before it got too out of hand. Once the train started moving, she had to grab onto a pole to not get thrown back.

Unlike her older sister Kyoko, who led half of the mini-live a few weeks ago, Natsumi was a much less talkative girl. The most Hana had seen her talk was when hyping up a crowd. Now that there was no one to perform in front of, she was much quieter.

"I know your face," Natsumi said to her as she cleaned up. Despite working together at the same company for a few months now, this was their first interaction with each other. "You're in the same unit as Reina and Akari, aren��t you?"

"I am," Hana responded. "I'm sorry about your juice."

"Why are you here, anyway? And why did you run into me?"

"I have to show up for a job soon. I'm trying not to be late, so I was really trying to make this train before it closed," Hana tried to explain. She finished wiping up Natsumi's drink from the train floor. "There, all done."

"You owe me a new juice," Natsumi said quietly.

"I'll give you two."

"MochiMocho," Natsumi told her. "Only that brand."

"I can do that," Hana said. She held onto the old drink to throw it away once they stopped. "Do you mind if I sit next to you?"

"Sure."

Once she sat down, Hana fixed her hair due to how all of her running had messed it up. The two didn't make any attempts at conversation for the next few stops, each in their own worlds as Natsumi went on her phone and Hana pulled out her diary to write about her day.

"You still have a diary?" Natsumi ended up asking her. "Aren't you in high school?"

"I just like to organize my thoughts with writing," Hana responded. She was already several pages through the blue star diary that her senior had picked for her.

"That's weird."

"Huh? What's wrong with it?"

"I stopped keeping a diary when I was 7."

"You're never too old to want to write everything down. Don't you have any special interests or hobbies?"

"No," Natsumi said. "When I'm not working I just play games, or go and learn something."

The train started to slow down, and both girls stood up at the same time.

"I'll be leaving now," they both said.

"This is my stop," Hana tried to explain as she left the train.

"Mine too," Natsumi responded, following her.

"I'm going to a session for my solo song."

"So am I."

They started walking out of the station together, close enough to talk together but not far enough apart that it looked like one of them was following the other.

Thankfully, Hana saved enough time running to catch the train in the first place that she didn't need to run again from the station to the studio. She probably would've died of exhaustion if that was the case.

Now, the two of them had time to enjoy the walk to the studio, with Hana stopping occasionally to look at flowers growing on the side of the roads.

"Hey, does the name of your place have flowers in it?" Natsumi asked.

"It starts with a W," Hana responded. "White… Heather?"

"So, we are going to the same place."

"What a coincidence. If I never rushed and scheduled the soonest appointment, this meeting never would have happened. I wouldn't have to owe anyone juice."

"Two juices," Natsumi corrected her.

"Right, of course."

Hana was going to continue her train of thought, but she was interrupted by a glimpse of something pastel purple and blue falling out of Natsumi's hand. The younger girl tried to catch it by grabbing the cord of her earbuds, but instead, it just disconnected the device.

It landed right in front of Hana, so she moved to pick it up for the younger girl.

"Don't look at it!" Natsumi said.

She was already too late.

For some reason, Natsumi hadn't had her phone's strap around her wrist. Picking up the phone, Hana saw a title by one of their seniors in Million Live.

"Rolling Triangle?" Hana said aloud.

"That's not mine, I don't know how it got there," Natsumi began saying. "I don't even know who Suou Momoko is."

"I never mentioned the artist."

"Just give it back. Please."

Hana handed the girl her phone, trying to not look at the screen again. "Otokura-san, do you like idols?"

Natsumi looked away. Her next response was quieter than usual. "Yes."

"I don't think there's anything wrong with that."

"Are you sure?"

"We're idols too, aren't we?"

"But that's different!" Natsumi tried to argue. "Being an idol is just our job. Liking other idols doesn't have to be a requirement to go with it."

"It's what you enjoy," Hana responded. They were almost there at the studio. "If anything, I think our seniors are an inspiration. They're there to be role models for what we can be in the future. We just need to work hard to get there."

She thought about all of the other Million Stars she had interacted with. From Kousaka Umi's boundless energy to Yokoyama Nao's sense of care for her juniors, and Nanao Yuriko's openness and trust for the future, they all had features inspiring her to do better.

"...Maybe you're right," Natsumi admitted.

They kept walking, with Hana now lagging behind. Natsumi eventually turned around, looking at Hana quizzically. "You're a lot different than the other two girls in your unit."

"Huh?"

"When we practiced being backup dancers, and especially when it was the two of them on stage dancing together, it was… really exhilarating to watch," Natsumi said to her. "Reina is serious and unapproachable. Akari is hard-working but helpful. Both of them make me want to do better."

"What about me?" Hana asked. She prepared for the worst, for her fellow NeoStar to begin critiquing how she performed during the mini-live. Natsumi was far from the most talkative person she'd met. There was a weird stiffness to how she phrased her sentences, and if it was because she was similar to Reina-

"You're genuine," Natsumi said. "Comfortable to be around, even. I feel normal talking to you."

"Really?" Hana responded. That wasn't what she was expecting, at all.

Natsumi turned around again. "The way you're an idol is different than how they are, but that's fine. They might actually need that."

In front of them was a modern piece of architecture, with a large sign featuring white, bell-shaped flowers pointing downwards.

"White Heather," Hana said. She had to think for a second to remember the significance in flower language, but once she remembered, her face pulled into a big smile. "Dreams coming true."

"Let's go inside," Natsumi responded. "Isn't your appointment soon?"

Hana snapped back into attention. "Right. I get to talk about my solo song today."

The inside of the studio was plush, with soft lighting and red carpet lining the floor when they entered. A waiting area to their left had pictures of bands and artists that had presumably worked there before along with thick leather couches, but Hana had no time to wait. She had to keep walking forward to check in with the woman working at the front desk.

"How can I help you two?" the secretary said.

"My name is Kanagawa Hana, I'm here for an appointment regarding a solo song."

"We're with 765 Productions, my name is Otokura Natsumi," Natsumi spoke up. "I'm also here for music."

"Oh right, I should've probably said our company name first."

"It's alright, we've been waiting for you two," the secretary responded. She grabbed a folder from the top of her desk and handed it to Natsumi. "Otokura-san, your composer wanted to give you this before your appointment. Please study the music before then."

"What about me?" Hana asked.

"Unfortunately, because this composer is new to this studio, she wanted to see you in person before she worked on your song," the secretary bowed her head. "My apologies."

"I guess I'll have to see what it's like when I make it there."

The secretary looked at her watch. "You should actually be going now. Your appointment was five minutes ago."

"Oh no," Hana said, starting to go to the nearest hallway. "I should be going."

"That way is the bathrooms. Try to look for room 1F, the light should be turned on."

The pink-haired idol turned around to leave, but not before staying to say a few last words with Natsumi. "Otokura-san, good luck with your session. Let's do our best to be top idols."

"You… you too," Natsumi responded.

Hana waved as she departed to go in the right direction, but Natsumi called out to her again.

"One more thing!" the middle schooler said. She took a few seconds to gather her words, but her next statement was like a declaration of war as she pointed at Hana. "My unit won't lose to yours! No matter how nice you are!"

Hana didn't know how to respond, so she simply responded with a smile. "I'm looking forward to how you do."

Now walking in the right direction, she started to look for room 1F. As she traversed the studio's halls, she realized she hadn't spent any time at all asking Natsumi about how her unit had been doing. She didn't know how many people were in it, or even who was in it.

"That was really rude of me," she said to herself.

Turning the corner, she found that the last door in the hallway was marked 1F. She knocked twice before opening the door slowly. Peeking her head in, she saw the lights were indeed turned on, but no one was there.

"Hello?" Hana said aloud. "My name is Kanagawa Hana, I'm here for my first music sess-"

She didn't have the time to react to the person running at her. In one swift motion, she had the wind knocked out of her as the stranger leaped towards her in an embrace. Hana had no idea where they came from, but as she struggled to get out of their grip she found they were evidently much stronger and more open to affection than she was.

"You're so cute!" the person squeezing her said. Her voice was confident and melodious. "And you smell like flowers, how lovely!"

"Please stop," Hana choked out. "Can't breathe."

The stranger let go of her, holding Hana at an arm's-length as they both looked at each other. Her chocolate-brown hair reached down to her mid-back, while her bright blue eyes looked back at Hana in curiosity.

"Interesting, most people usually enjoy my hugs," she said. "I must be really excited to work with you today if that ended up hurting you. Or you're more dainty than I thought."

"Um, my name is Kanagawa Hana, I'm here for my first music session," Hana repeated her statement from earlier. "Is this the right room?"

"Oh right! I didn't introduce myself yet," the stranger said. She let go of Hana's shoulders. "You can call me Aina. I'm in charge of writing your first song with 765 Productions."

"What's your last name?"

"Not important," she winked. "My name in the business is just Aina, because there's only one of me."

"U... understood."

Aina had on long, wide-legged white pants with an orange sleeveless blouse over it, exposing her toned arms. Her makeup was perfectly done to make her appearance look even more glamorous, while a pair of golden crescent moon earrings dangled from her ears. She couldn't have been older than 26, and she carried herself like a fashion model.

Hana could practically picture her wearing that outfit on a big runway. The chocolate-haired girl would have a spotlight shining above her, her eyes opening as she faced the crowd and sound of hundreds of cameras clicking to capture her presence. She would stand alone, commanding everyone's attention and having every eye focus only on her.

"Surely you've heard of me at least once?" Aina asked, breaking Hana out of her imagination.

"Well," Hana tried to think. She had seen Aina's face before, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Aina, the star who took over the fashion scene at age 16?"

"Um…"

"Aina, walking on Paris Fashion Week at the age of 21 and singing internationally at 22?"

"Um..."

"Aina, selling out the Nippon Budokan last month?"

"I'm very sorry, I can't say I know who you are" Hana finally spoke. "I spend most of my time reading books and manga."

"Unfortunate," Aina's mood sounded like it worsened dramatically with that comment. Surprisingly, she quickly perked up. "Well, now Aina is making her debut in the production scene, and you get to be my first Let's just get to work."

"What should we do?"

"Sit down," she patted one of the plush couch chairs in front of her as she went to take a seat. "I'm going to take some notes before we start writing. Act natural."

"Yes ma'am."

Hana sat in silence as Aina sat back in her seat, legs nearly hugging her chest. She intermittently scribbled things down in her notepad, taking breaks to look back at the pink-haired idol for a few seconds. Every time they made eye contact, Hana looked away quickly, trying her best to sit naturally despite being under constant scrutiny.

"Um, Aina-san, is the session going to begin soon?" Hana ended up asking. "This is feeling uncomfortable."

"The session has already begun, just not the lyric portion. Stay natural."

"Okay…"

The cycle of note-taking and staring continued on for longer. Eventually, Aina ended up sitting upright in her chair.

"I've got it!" she said. "How does this title sound to you? Beautiful Chapter."

"Well, I definitely like reading," Hana responded.

Aina cleared her throat, before closing her eyes and opening up her mouth to sing.

"I'll be starting every day as a brand new page, writing every line with the pen inside my chest."

"Something like that, for the chorus?" Aina asked, looking back at her. It was an upbeat melody. The fact there were no instruments to accompany the older woman almost didn't matter with how well she sang it.

"It's beautiful," Hana said.

"Maybe, 'the pen inside my heart' instead of 'my chest.' Then the symbolism would be clearer."

"Are you sure I can sing this?" Hana asked.

"Of course! It's your song after all. Or at least it will be."

"I can't wait to hear the full thing."

"Which will come, after I get to know more about you," Aina said. She looked back down at her notepad. "What's your favorite food?"

"Baked sweet potatoes. Or kiwis depending on if they're in season," Hana responded quickly.

"Favorite drink?"

"Apple juice?"

"Hometown?"

The questions just kept coming.

"Toyokawa, Aichi prefecture," Hana responded.

"Next question," Aina said. "What is your father's occupation?"

"Police officer."

"Mother's?"

"I'm sorry, Miss Aina," Hana started to say. "But is all of this necessary for writing my song?"

"Of course!" the woman responded. "An artist shines best when they have music that belongs to them."

"But for me? I'm just a no-name idol."

"That's even more important in your case. You're my first client while I'm entering this brand new field in the entertainment industry, and this is your very first song in a brand new company. We have to make this song memorable. For both of us."

Hana took a deep breath. "Okay, then let's keep going."

"Your file says you applied to 765 Productions because you wanted to 'find a good love story,' is that still true?"

"Yes."

"Are there any other reasons you want to be an idol again, especially after your last unfortunate run?"

Hana opened her mouth to respond to another general question, but she was taken aback by how unexpected this one turned out to be. "How do you know about that?"

"Your past career with Miss Ichihara Ayaka is public knowledge. Even for someone not in the industry, it's the first thing people will see once they look you up, like I did," Aina told her. "It's up to you if you want to change how people see you. I can show you the way there, but you need to take it."

"Then yes," Hana responded. "I still want to be an idol after everything that happened. This is my second chance, and I don't want to waste it."

"Do you think you're suited to be in a unit with Fukuyama Reina and Miss Watanabe Akari?"

That was another difficult question.

Was she suited to be with them?

She was the only one in the group who wasn't a performer in the NeoStars' first appearance to the public. She was someone who still had issues singing in public,

"Let me rephrase then," Aina said, breaking the silence. "How do you feel about your fellow unit members?"

Compared to the other two, she felt so minuscule. It was like she was as bright as a candle, barely able to make an impression when there were two literal stars shining right next to her.

But still, she wanted to shine.

Hana spent what felt like an eternity trying to think of what to say, in the most genuine way that she could.

"I wish I could perform on stage with as much confidence as they do," she started to say. "But during my solo performance, I cried in front of everyone. I almost ruined the concert. And I couldn't sing without Akari helping me. And I hate that! I don't want to be the person holding everyone back. I want to continue on with this chapter in being an idol but I can't do that until I improve."

She felt like a weight was just lifted off of her chest, as if she was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief after saying that all out loud. Months of uncertainty in being an idol were finally spoken to someone else instead of just being written down in her diary.

And it felt good to tell somebody about how she had been feeling.

Hana had been looking at her feet the whole time, but when she looked at the older girl, she was surprised to be looked back at with a reassuring smile.

"That wasn't so hard, was it?" Aina asked her. "I still have more questions, but give me a moment."

"What are you going to do?" Hana asked.

Aina took out her phone and started rapidly texting someone, her manicured nails clicking against the phone screen with every keypress. "I just got a flash of inspiration, so I'm canceling my meetings for the rest of the day."

"I have practice at 5," Hana responded. "I might have to leave early."

"Not anymore, cancel that," Aina responded quickly. She dramatically pressed send on her phone, before throwing it across the couch and looking back at Hana with an ambitious look. "Instead, let's write your first solo song."